Friends?

Situation:  Jerry met Ben at their work, an honest but barely above minimum wage job. They worked together well, often eating lunch together.  Sometimes they'd chat on the phone after work.  One time Ben asked Jerry for $300.00, "My mother needs surgery bad and this is all we need for her to get it."  $300.00 was a lot of money to Jerry but tomorrow was payday and he really liked Ben.  Jerry agreed and gave him the money with the agreement that in two weeks, Ben would pay him back on payday.

Months went by, Ben never gave Jerry any part of what he owed. He had many lame excuses. Then Ben quit the job.  Jerry never saw him again.

Lessons learned:  This lesson was very expensive for Jerry!  He was too trusting!

My granny told me, many times over: "Tell me who your friends are and I'll tell you who you are."  There are always loans to be had in an emergency.  A good rule is to never borrow from or lend money to either friends or family.  I personally have, on rare occasions, lent money to a family member but only if I could afford to lose the whole amount.